Aromazap/Myrtlezap/CeramicRockZap

[momofthegoons]

Flash, you got a beauty!

A lot of us have trouble in the beginning with the stem draw. Firstly, your herb needs to be dry and ground to the consistency of coarse ground pepper.

The stem pack takes some practice. At first, it can be hard to figure out the right way so that the air flows through the stem properly. There are a couple of techniques. One is to use the straw method; sucking up the herb with the stem. I find that this method produces a firmer stem pack and can sometimes be harder to draw. The other method is to push the stem down through some ground herb to fill. I do this right in the grinder. In the beginning, this method worked best for me as it didn't compress the herb as much. I've found that having the stem warm up slightly works well since the herb sticks in there better. Also, you might want to tilt the Zap on it's side for your first hit so that any loose herb seats itself in the stem with your first hit.

Part of this is also getting used to the draw, or perfecting your own technique. There is less air flow in the stem than in other styles of vape (i.e. whip style). Try to loosen up your lip lock on the stem and let a little air in while you hit. Or, use more of a "puffing" style, taking little continuous hits.

I'm confident that with practice, you will get this down.

 

[SleepyHead]

I was going to ask how I should go about cleaning my stems because soaking in iso just isn't doing anything anymore, even a week long soak. But I just read about the compressed air, and think I'll go run out out today and get me a can. Also, my heatport is a bit wobbly, so I'll be buying one of those Tite kits and also a screen replacement kit since I have 3+ stems with broken screens. How well do those kits work?
But I use my vape every few hours every day and has made me a happy man!

 

[JDSupreme]

Im sorry everytime I hear someone talk about a can of compressed air I think about Towlie "Walking on sunshine" hahaha

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkT5gJ8PU-0

 

[JDSupreme]

Sorry double post

 

[Rick]

Yup, FlasH got an intense walnut. It was only broke in for about 18 hours here and the walnuts like a day or few to thoroughly break in. Then there is your learning curve. We always hit every Zap before we ship to be sure they are in the correct vapor range. Some will rip like they have been on for months and others are lighter than that but they all zero in on the perfect vapor range in a very short time.
Yesterday was another fun to town day. Started off with a stop at Bob the wood guys place. Picked up some nice rock hard bone dry Australian burls for Ed over at http://www.edstnt.com/. Bob has shelves and shelves of them, all identified with the weight and species. The burl cutters are licensed in Australia and every burl removed is inventoried. The burls will then grow back in several years. Also got some more beautiful walnut and a spalted Myrtle crotch piece to cut up for Zapville.
Then off to Tim the glass guy to catch up again on inventory. We are to the point I can call him and the day after tomorrow he has the goods. Then to Harbor Freight for some tools and supplies and home late in the afternoon.
SO, JD, I did not get your order shipped yesterday as I was way too late to hit the mail. Your order will ship today for sure and should be there Saturday if the mail is on time. They(USPS)have been real good lately so it should make it no problem. Yours is another "one of the nicest ever done" IMO. It is different than the one shown a page or two back but we think you will like it. Also a few misc glass orders out today.
Abag(Conor) and others, I expect to ship another batch out Saturday for a Monday arrival. Yours is in that group.
The walnuts are very special and most of the images shown do not do them justice. They need to be seen by the naked eye to really reveal what they are all about.

 

[reece]

I was going to ask how I should go about cleaning my stems because soaking in iso just isn't doing anything anymore, even a week long soak. But I just read about the compressed air, and think I'll go run out out today and get me a can. Also, my heatport is a bit wobbly, so I'll be buying one of those Tite kits and also a screen replacement kit since I have 3+ stems with broken screens. How well do those kits work?
But I use my vape every few hours every day and has made me a happy man!

Are you using fresh iso to clean the stems? I reuse iso for every stem until it no longer cleans, that's when I know it's time to evaporate and get some wand qwiso (got a gram last time). That was with the stock stems. With the glass stem I use silicone earplugs (forgot whose idea this was but thanks) to stop the ends. I pour a little bit of iso into the glass stem and shake shake shake (shake your booty, shake your booty). Then I let the iso sit for a bit, and then pour it into a separate container. When I have enough collected in there I will evaporate to make wand qwiso.

I have had no issues with screens. No problem cleaning them even after about a year of use. I don't stick anything other than material to be vaped and the stem pack tool Rick supplies into the stems.

Good luck.

 

[Lycanthrope]

reece, that was me that suggested that silicone ear plugs could be used to plug the ends of the stems. I use this method on my Tooty stem and it works very well. I do however use Everclear 190 Proof Grain Alcohol rather than ISO as it's a much stronger solvent and is consumable to make some Green Dragon afterwards. I just soak my nylon short stems in a small bottle filed with the Everclear a couple of hours shaking the bottle up 4 or 5 times and it cleans out most of resin resin. The herb always tastes much better after cleaning. I clean mine after about 25 stem loads or so. In between alcohol cleaning I blow out the stems and heat port with some compressed air computer cleaner after each use

 

[JDSupreme]

Yours is another "one of the nicest ever done" IMO. It is different than the one shown a page or two back but we think you will like it.

Rick - I can't begin to explain how much this made my day. I'm so doing my happy dance Thz again so much!!!!! Damn now the rest of this week is reeeeeeeaaaaaaallllllllly gonna drag.

Don't worry Mom i'll post pics as soon as its outta the box!

 

[reece]

reece, that was me that suggested that silicone ear plugs could be used to plug the ends of the stems. I use this method on my Tooty stem and it works very well. I do however use Everclear 190 Proof Grain Alcohol rather than ISO as it's a much stronger solvent and is consumable to make some Green Dragon afterwards. I just soak my nylon short stems in a small bottle filed with the Everclear a couple of hours shaking the bottle up 4 or 5 times and it cleans out most of resin resin. The herb always tastes much better after cleaning. I clean mine after about 25 stem loads or so. In between alcohol cleaning I blow out the stems and heat port with some compressed air computer cleaner after each use

Thanks again. Yeah, I prefer qwiso. I think it's part the ritual aspect of vaping it as well as I really love hash and was never able to have a steady supply of it until now. Also, for some reason I tend to overdo it with ingesting. I don't know why, I know better but I almost always go too far. The last time was drinking a Bloody Maryjane made with a gram of kief. I drank way too much and was about to drink more but luckily decided to wait. Hell of a ride, and enjoyable after leveling off. But the take off, (like Rick Flair would say) Woooo! That was a little over three years ago. I ain't about to fuck with something named "dragon." (but give me some time, I'll forget again)

 

[momofthegoons]

JDSupreme, I'm really looking forward to seeing it! I'll tell you, every time Rick starts talking about "one of the nicest done" I get the itch again. It's like the ultimate carrot in front of my nose.

I ain't about to fuck with something named "dragon."

ah reece, this made me laugh out loud.

 

[FlasH]

Flash, you got a beauty!

...

Thanks for the tips! I was trying to do it with the sucking method and packing it down with the wooden dowel and it did indeed prove to be quite hard to hit. I will have to try just pushing the herb into the stem and maybe lightly packing it in with the dowel. So, I hear it's designed to be plugged in 24/7 but will unplugging it at night and plugging it in during the day affect its performance at all? I usually don't use it til the night time so I'd think leaving it on all day will help it break in some more.

Also, I was surprised at how small this thing is! I wasn't expecting it to be as small as a coke can (practically), which is not a bad thing, in fact I think it's a great thing. Helps it blend in more on my desk rather than a big hulky piece of wood just sitting there it's a quaint and peaceful work of art relaxing on the desk

Yup, FlasH got an intense walnut. It was only broke in for about 18 hours here and the walnuts like a day or few to thoroughly break in. Then there is your learning curve. We always hit every Zap before we ship to be sure they are in the correct vapor range. Some will rip like they have been on for months and others are lighter than that but they all zero in on the perfect vapor range in a very short time.

I'm glad to know they go through some quality testing before leaving the shop as I've had some vapes that seem like they go through no testing at all. Thanks for that reassurance . I'm loving the glass tooty more than the plastic stems, I feel like I can get more consistent draws and the vapor is cooled more when passing through the glass.

 

[momofthegoons]

No problem FlasH. In the beginning, I was sucking on that thing till my eyes felt like they were popping out. I actually don't even use the dowel if I use the straw method. I will sometimes put my finger over the end of the stem and draw to seat the herb a bit.

Why unplug it at all? It's really made to be run 24/7 and doesn't use much electricity. That way, it will break in quicker and always be ready.

I also prefer the glass stems over the stock stems, although I find myself using both. It just depends on what's clean or what I grab. The glass stems do give better draw and cool really nicely. Did you get one with a carb?

 

[FlasH]

No problem FlasH. In the beginning, I was sucking on that thing till my eyes felt like they were popping out. I actually don't even use the dowel if I use the straw method. I will sometimes put my finger over the end of the stem and draw to seat the herb a bit.

Why unplug it at all? It's really made to be run 24/7 and doesn't use much electricity. That way, it will break in quicker and always be ready.

I also prefer the glass stems over the stock stems, although I find myself using both. It just depends on what's clean or what I grab. The glass stems do give better draw and cool really nicely. Did you get one with a carb?

I like learning new vapes and what you told me about pressing the herb in rather than sucking and doweling helped a lot. I was wondering though, should I take the herb out half way through and mix it up? When I use the MFLB the shaking and tapping does that part but if that's not necessary for zap stems then I won't do it as it can be a pain.

 

[momofthegoons]

I'm glad you're having fun with your new Zap!

The only time I bother blowing out the herb half way and crumbling it is if the herb is top shelf and sticky. Since that is a rarity for me ( :/ ) I usually don't bother. The herbs I usually have are mids and dry so it isn't as necessary. When I do blow it out, it is really difficult not to blow it all over the place. A small, empty jar will do the trick (bigger than a shot glass). Aim for the side and the herb wont blow up and out of the jar. Then, you can dump it out and do your crumble, suck it up again and you've got a couple more hits.

If the herb wont come out when you blow on the stem, it's not ready yet. Take a hit or two then try again.

Isn't all this practice a blast?

Edit: Just thought about one more thing. Your grind doesn't need to be as fine for the Zap as the LB. That will make for a hard draw too.

 

[JDSupreme]

Your grind doesn't need to be as fine for the Zap as the LB. That will make for a hard draw too.

Good to know. I've been on auto pilot for powder grinding in my 2 piece for the LB.

It's on its way, in the USPS's hands now

 

[Dirtydan]

Rick, I ordered a zap about a month and a half ago. It was working great up until a few days ago. Randomly my zap will stop working. It will eventually start working again but it does it at random. What's wrong?

 

[momofthegoons]

Dirtydan, did you get a car adaptor with yours? If so, try plugging it in your car and see if it heats up. If so, it is probably the wall adaptor.

In any case, you should email Rick directly for the quickest response.

 

[FlasH]

I'm glad you're having fun with your new Zap!

The only time I bother blowing out the herb half way and crumbling it is if the herb is top shelf and sticky. Since that is a rarity for me ( :/ ) I usually don't bother. The herbs I usually have are mids and dry so it isn't as necessary. When I do blow it out, it is really difficult not to blow it all over the place. A small, empty jar will do the trick (bigger than a shot glass). Aim for the side and the herb wont blow up and out of the jar. Then, you can dump it out and do your crumble, suck it up again and you've got a couple more hits.

If the herb wont come out when you blow on the stem, it's not ready yet. Take a hit or two then try again.

Isn't all this practice a blast?

Edit: Just thought about one more thing. Your grind doesn't need to be as fine for the Zap as the LB. That will make for a hard draw too.

I do love playing with this thing! I am getting some good hits tonight. Oh and I am having to take it out and mix it up. Mine is usually somewhat fresh and mostly tops so it does get stuck up in there. Thanks for the tips, yours have helped me use the Zap to its full potential!

Ps. and I love how little it uses.

 

[JDSupreme]

awwwww yaaaaa i just tracked my zap to the post office down the street!!!! should be in my hands in about 2 hours!!!! woot woot!

 

[momofthegoons]

And now the fun begins!

 

[JDSupreme]

Just got myself "zapped" wow this hits way better than I ever though out of the box. I let it heat up for about an hour and i've been ripping on it since.....LOVE IT!!!! Thx Rick its fuckin BADASS!!!!

 

[FlasH]

Just got myself "zapped" wow this hits way better than I ever though out of the box. I let it heat up for about an hour and i've been ripping on it since.....LOVE IT!!!! Thx Rick its fuckin BADASS!!!!

Looks sick JD. Congrats!

 

[lwien]

JD, got a tip for you. In both of those pics, I see that you have the power cord either draped across your glass table at 90 degrees to the side or 90 degrees down. That power cord connector to the vape is the weak point for these types of vapes so I suggest that you try and make sure that the cord is draped across your table without any angle to it for at least 4 to 5 inches so it doesn't put any undo stress on the connector. I've had my PD for over 2 years and never had any issues with the connector going bad, unlike many others here.

Just an FYI for longterm reliability.

 

[JDSupreme]

Damn the ripples in this wood look 3 dimensional...the grain looks like it has divits but its flush. Its borderline holographic! Then there's "the eye"

 

[momofthegoons]

Very nice JD. Glad you are having fun. Wait until you've "bonded" with it a bit. Few coats of Zapolish and you'll be hooked!